Photography

Julie Bhosale, a blogger, nutritionist and mom, is setting the record straight on how post-baby bodies really look.

Bhosale shared photos of what her stomach looked like after giving birth to two children. She commented on the pressure mothers often feel to bounce back to their former bodies after pregnancy, especially with widespread media coverage of celebrities whose post-baby bodies look "amazing."

You live in a society that pushes images at you every day of women who have given birth and just “bounced back” –- great for them (truly, that is great, Kate Middleton you are amazing!). But this is such a small minority. For most of us, our bodies change, and change a lot. It is scary, it is hard, it can be downright disgusting and upsetting, but it is real and normal. Although I am a qualified health professional, I am also a mother, and my body has also not just ‘bounced back.’ We are starting to see a shift in the media and online with more women sharing the often hidden and unspoken realities of child birth and the effect on your bodies.

Bhosale is encouraging readers to use the hashtag, #TakeBackPostPartum, to raise awareness about how a woman's body really changes during pregnancy.

She added that while everyone's physical journey after birth is different, it's all beautiful and should be respected:

You may be broken, exhausted, sore, have lumps, bumps, marks and jiggly bits. You may not look like the next Victoria’s Secret Underwear model, but focus on how you feel. Be kind to yourself and your body; you will look like how you are meant to when you feel good. It may take some time. It took me a lot longer to feel good following the birth of my first son [than] this time around. There is no one to compare yourself [to]. No one is walking in your shoes, deals with what you deal with. You will be judged. I am judged everyday and there will be people judging me right now. Doing what is right for you and your family takes courage, takes strength and as a mother, you have both. Nourish and love from the inside out and do not forget: You are beautiful, you are amazing, you are a mother.

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